Automotive News: Hagens Berman claims Tesla overplayed its self-driving capabilities, Used Cars Very Safe, Except for One Thing, German environmental lobby sues motor authority over VW scandal
Tesla's the target of a law firm that claims it overplayed its self-driving capabilities — and it could wind up in court
A law firm is trying to put together a class action lawsuit claiming the automaker misled consumers about the self-driving capabilities of Autopilot 2.
First spotted by Electrek, law firm Hagens Berman is pitching the class action lawsuit to Tesla owners on its website with the tagline: "Did you pay a premium for Tesla's Autopilot 2 (AP2) safety features? You may be entitled to a refund."
"Hagens Berman believes that consumers have the right to reimbursement for the premium price they paid for what they thought was a 'full self-driving' automobile," the page pitching the class action lawsuit reads.
"According to the firm's investigation, Tesla charged consumers high prices for vehicles that it claimed had 'full self-driving capability.' Those claims now appear to be false," it continues.
Hagens Berman is the law firm leading a class action lawsuit against Volkswagen for using emissions-cheating software. read more »
Very Safe, Except for One Thing…Legal Clash with FTC on Marketing of Used Cars
Can a used car be marketed as “safe” or “certified” even if it has defective air bags, a faulty ignition switch or other potentially lethal problems?
Yes, so long as the used car dealer discloses that the vehicle may be subject to a pending safety recall.
That stance, taken by the Federal Trade Commission, is at the heart of a recent legal settlement with General Motors and two used car dealers over deceptive advertising practices. But it is now being put to the test in a federal court in Washington, D.C., by auto safety activists.
The safety groups contended in legal papers filed Friday that the settlement places unaware car buyers, their passengers and others at “the risk of injury or death caused by the defective vehicles.” In essence, the concern is that buyers will have a false sense of security if a car is described as safe and won’t take care of the defect that prompted the recall. read more »
German environmental lobby sues motor authority over VW scandal
German environmental group Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) has filed a suit against German motor authority KBA, accusing it of failing to act robustly enough over Volkswagen's diesel emissions scandal. read more »
How one man triggered a GM recall
After years of seeing General Motors and federal safety regulators do nothing to address failing airbag sensors in the passenger seats of the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky, Troy Lyman took up the matter himself.
Lyman is not an engineer, and his only automotive experience is a past job with a manufacturer of radio-controlled cars. He moderates online message boards for enthusiastic Solstice and Sky owners. He's also a web developer at a California naval base that investigates wea-pons systems failures.
So in early 2016, Lyman began analyzing mounting complaints about the cars in the same detached, data-focused manner that his base uses for Tomahawk missiles.
"Research is kind of my thing," Lyman said. "I just thought, "Enough. We need to get to the bottom of it.'"
The sensor determines whether to deploy the passenger-side airbag. Sensor failures, indicated by a dashboard warning light, can disable the airbag in a crash, but there have been no reports of accidents, deaths or injuries because of the problem.
The 67-page report Lyman produced and submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration last spring -- filled with photographs and technical illustrations, charts of publicly available GM warranty data and documentation of complaints NHTSA had already posted on its website -- got results. read more »
Nissan recalls 56,000 Murano SUV over power-steering fluid leak
Nissan is recalling more than 56,000 cars because of power-steering hoses that may leak fluid and potentially lead to fires.
Nissan North America said the recall affects the 2013-2014 Murano vehicles.
The problem stems from the power-steering hose clamp, which may not adequately secure the hose. That could allow the hose to detach and leak power-steering fluid, the company said.
Power-steering fluid leaking onto a hot engine or exhaust pipes could cause a fire, Nissan said. read more »
